Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Author: Melissa Marr

Publish Date: Sept. 4, 2012 by Harper Collins, 306 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

Now, I read “Carnival of Souls” by Melissa Marr almost immediately when it came out on Sept. 4. Like I almost always do, I read it virtual cover to virtual cover in a matter of hours. As soon as I finished it I had three thoughts:

1. I can’t wait for the next one! (Not an overly original thought mind you and one I have frequently, but never the less, it still flashed in my mind).

2. How did I forget how much I love Melissa Marr (Somehow I managed to do it even though I read her Wicked Lovely series not that long ago either.

3. This is definitely going up on my blog. Now that I’ve accomplished it, I’ll tell you why it took me over a month to do it.

I just didn’t know how to put into word how much I enjoyed this story. This book is classified in a number of ways: dystopian, urban fantasy, paranormal, science fiction and the list goes on. The thing is, it fits all of those shelves and even a few others.

It’s set between two worlds. One in the same earth and human realm that we all know, where the main character, Mallory, resides even though she doesn’t belong. Not that she has any idea about that. The second world is that of The City where being bloodthirsty and horny are all in an average day. This is where the rest of our main characters come from.

That’s the beauty of this book. It’s not a simple, single plot of one boy and one girl as protagonists with a few supporting characters mixed in. The book is written from about four different points of view, each one having a different relationship with everyone around them.

If you don’t like one character, that’s okay because you have a couple others to choose from.

That brings me to why I really enjoy Melissa Marr’s works. She has the ability to create a story and not only give it to you from the perspective of the main character but also give it to you through the eyes of everyone around. What details one character might have missed gets picked up by another, creating a story with depth. Those are the ones that pique and hold my interest.

“Carnival of Souls” revolved around a tournament where the stakes are high. Most will only walk away through death. Others will wish they had died. All of it for the quest for power and each one has their own reasons for entering and wanting that power. They plot against one another, forging allies and retrieving information through any means necessary.

Then in the midst of it all is a kid, trapped in the middle by a web of lies and she has no idea. (For those who have already read the book I just want to say: Can you believe Kaleb did that?!)

Now if you’ll excuse me. I’m off to re-read the book because once just wasn’t enough.

“The urge to be something other than the lowest order was the driving force in Kaleb’s world. Zevi knew that. He’d come to terms with it, stitched Kaleb up, set his broken bones, nursed him through fevers, and avoided questions that would make Kaleb flinch. For years, he’d pretended he didn’t know Kaleb murdered and whore to provide for them...”

Paradise in musty pages

This blog is for those of you who are big book nerds, always looking for something new to read. It's also a place for self-publishers to get some feedback or publicity on their work. I will be posting recommendations on books ranging from bestsellers to hidden gems, from professionals to amateur writers. At Book Nerd Paradise anyone is welcome to discuss books, writers or any idea you're throwing around for your own stories.

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